


Night Terrors

by barnes1917



Series: things for tumblr events [2]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, General, Hurt/Comfort, Nightmares, Post-Reveal Adrien Agreste/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Post-Reveal Love Square, also kinda fluffy if u rlllllyyy look???, idk??
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-29
Updated: 2018-06-13
Packaged: 2019-02-23 14:22:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,799
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13191936
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/barnes1917/pseuds/barnes1917
Summary: Adrien has nightmares. Marinette absolutely will not allow this. Obviously. / rated for language.





	1. Part One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> HEY SO THIS IS FOR scada-bunny over on tumblr for miraculous secret santa! Merry Christmas, happy holidays, and happy new year!!!! hope you enjoy!!

 

Adrien Agreste has been suffering from severe nightmares since the day his mother went missing. He won’t admit that to anyone, of course, because he’s one half of Paris’ super hero duo, and how can you protect a city if you still have night terrors?

Since becoming Chat Noir, his nightmares have only began to occur more often, intensifying as well.

Where he used to have nightmares of letting his father down, of what might have happened to his mother, and the typical of a teenage boy, he now has vivid nightmares of his father being akumatized and doing horrible things, of the unspeakable things his mother could have suffered when she disappeared, of what could happen to those he loves if his identity is ever revealed.

And the ones about Ladybug dying because of his cataclysm? He shivers at the mere thought.

Not to mention that those have only gotten worse since their identity reveal two weeks ago.

So it wasn't unusual for the blonde hero to wake up panting in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat and shouting out for help. It happening so often never made it easier for a certain little black kwami to witness, however.

"Kid....are you alright?" The little creature asks in his groggy little concerned voice, despite knowing that his charge's answer will be anything but the truth.

"Ye-Yeah." He chokes out, hand to his heaving chest. His hair stuck to his forehead in sweat drenched tendrils. The sight depicted being anything but alright.

“I'm alright. Go back to sleep."

"Maybe you should talk to someone about this?" Plagg dares to mention, big green eyes so full of concern that Adrien can't even get mad. No one looks at him like that these days.

Except Marinette, of course, the exception to every rule.

Adrien looks at his bedside clock; _3:45 a.m._

"It’s too late, Plagg. No one is awake."

Plagg tries his best to mentally run down a list of people he knows that truly care for Adrien.

Nino is first in mind, but he probably wouldn't want to call him for this.

Alya is next, but Adrien isn't quite close enough to her yet.

His father? Not even an option, bless the child’s poor soul. And Nathalie? Definitely not.

And then.... _of course. Marinette._ Why didn't he think of her sooner? She shares both the burden of being a hero with him, and all the baggage that comes with it.

"Why don't you try Marinette?" The little cat-like creature asks, floating up to better look at his chosen’s face. "She probably deals with similar things, you know? And even if she doesn't, she's the only one who will kind of understand."

He seems to ponder the idea for a moment before shrugging.

"She's probably asleep, Plagg."

"You won't know unless you try it, kid."

Before he knows it, he's texting Marinette.

_Hey. Are you up?_

He has a short mental battle with himself before hitting send.

Four anxiety filled minutes later, he gets a call from his partner.

"Adrien? What's up?" She says on a yawn, voice groggy and words slightly slurred.

He immediately feels bad for waking her. Regret sinks into his heart.

"I- Did I wake you?"

"Yeah, but it’s okay. Is something the matter?" Her voice is beginning to clear up. His conscience isn’t.

"Well, I-I don't want to bother you if you'd rather sleep-"

"Chaton, what's the matter?" She somehow demands with a voice so soft and tender that it makes his heart swell.

He knows there's no denying her now.

Not that he ever could.

"I've been having these....." Is he really going to tell _Marinette_ that he's having _nightmares?_

Apparently so.

"-nightmares lately. Really bad ones." He mumbles, tracing patterns on his blanket.

"Oh?" She sounds so sad, so heartbroken in a single syllable.

"Yeah. Um, t-tonight's was....particularly bad. You, uh, got hit. By my cataclysm. It-It was horrible." He says, voice strained. He wipes at the tears in his eyes.

When did he start crying?

"Oh, minou." She gasps. "I'm.....that'll never happen."

He shrugs, sniffling. "I-I don't know. It could have...with Puppeteer and Dark Cupid. Easily."

"Adrien. _No_." She says firmly, not giving him any time to argue. "It wouldn't have happened. It isn't going to happen. I won't let it."

He stays silent, sniffles filling the silence.

"Adrien?" Her voice is so soft he could barely hear it. "Do you want me to stay on the phone?"

"If you don't mind."

"Of course I don't."�

 

//

 

  
He wakes up in a panic, gasping for air, heart racing, back drenched in sweat.

Another nightmare. This time, it was failing to save his mother from a pretty nasty akuma, and he couldn't shake the aftershocks of the dream no matter how hard he tried.

Plagg was quick to assure him that it was a nightmare, that it wasn't real.

"That doesn't change the fact that it _felt_ real, Plagg." Adrien mutters, pulling his knees up to his chest to bury his head there. "I couldn't save her.."

Plagg wasn't sure if his charge was talking about real life or his dream.

"You should call Marinette."

The blonde model lifts his head just enough to look at his kwami through his bangs.

"She's probably asleep."

"That didn't stop you last time."

With a tiny sigh, Adrien reaches for his phone and shoots Marinette a quick text.

_Hey. Had another nightmare. You up?_

Not even forty seconds later (he counted) he gets a reply.

_Let me grab a cup of tea and I'll call._

He smiles slightly, happy to have someone to talk to at this time of the night.

He gets up to stretch his back, and when his phone rings he is quick to answer.

"Hey." She hums into the phone, her voice sleepy and soft. He can hear wind in the background; she must be on her balcony.

"Hi." He murmurs, walking over to look out at the city through his windows.

He imagines her on her balcony, wrapped up in a blanket, sipping her tea and looking out over their city. His mouth twitches into a small smile at the thought.

And then, out of instinct, “Did I wake you?”

She hesitates.

“No,” she finally answers. “I was studying.”

“Oh?” He questions, not sure he believes her.

"You wanna talk about it?" She asks to change the subject.

"Not on the phone. It can wait til tomorrow."

“I-" She begins, and he can hear Tikki fervently whispering something. "Do you want to meet somewhere?"

He pauses, glancing to Plagg to gauge his reaction. The little creature nods, wanting nothing more than for Adrien to feel better.

"It's a little late, Marine-"

"I know.” She says, and then “Do you want to meet somewhere?"

"Are-Are you sure you can sneak away? I wouldn't want you to get in trouble over me."

"Maman and Papa won't even know I'm gone."

He knows she's smiling that Ladybug smile he usually only sees as Chat Noir, and it's enough for him to accept her offer.

"What do you say? Eiffel tower in ten?"

"Sure. Thank you, Mari." He smiles softly, and it is only then that he realizes that his heartbeat has slowed down to a semi-normal speed.

"Anytime, Adrien."

"See you there."

"Last one there has to buy the other lunch tomorrow." She giggles, hanging up.

With a tiny lovesick grin, he pockets his phone and calls out his transformation.

_No way is she winning._


	2. Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> adrien has more nightmares and mari comforts him // or: the one where the truth comes out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol i forgot to post the last two parts of this but i’m only like seventeen days late so.... i guess that counts for something??? anyways, please enjoy!!

He wakes up shouting for Ladybug, sweat beading on his forehead.

_Another nightmare._

Plagg is still quick to check on him.

"Kid?"

"I'm okay, Plagg." He says, reaching for his phone habitually now. "It was just a dream. It was just a dream."

"You calling her?" The creature asks, big green eyes watching the blonde’s every move.

"I gotta make sure it was just a dream." He utters, dialing her number with shaking hands.

It rings one, two, three, four times before she answers.

"Adrien? What's wrong?" Came her concerned voice through the phone, and he heaved a big, relieved sigh.

"I had to make sure you were okay."

"What happened this time?" She asks carefully.

"You uh-....it was bad, Mari." He whispers, closing his eyes in an attempt to keep the tears at bay. "It was real bad. I-I couldn't save you. You-You fell....he got you..." He chokes on a sob, wiping violently at the tears escaping his eyes. “-and Tikki. And I-I couldn’t save either of you.”

"Oh, Kitty.." She murmurs, voice thick with emotion. "That won't happen. Okay? I promise." There is a weird pause and the sudden sound of wind, and he assumes she's gone out to her balcony.

"You can't promise that, Marinette." He says, a little too harshly, a little too broken. "He's obviously crazy, especially if he’d akumatize a fucking toddler. We don't know what he's capable of."

"No, but I do know what we are capable of." She assures, grunting as if leaping or lifting something heavy.

_What the hell is she doing?_

"And we are capable of taking him down and remaining in one piece. As long as we do it together.”

"You don't know that-"

"Yes, I do. I know that." She huffs, breathing becoming rapid and shallow.

It sounds as if she's running.

"Bugaboo, _what the hell_ are you doing right now? Running a marathon?"

She grunts one last time, a strange thump coming from her end of the line.

"Open your window and you'll see."

He does as instructed, of course, because what else could he do but comply to such a weird command?

He goes to his wall of windows and opens a single pane; there, in all her red and black polka dotted glory, stood Ladybug herself on the rooftop adjacent to his. He saw her move the phone to her other hand, offering the smallest of waves with her free hand.

"May I?" She asks into the phone, voice softer than he’s ever heard. She’s looking over at him from the rooftop she stood on, eyebrows raised expectantly.

He knows he's looking at her with his heart in his tear-filled eyes, coupled with a whole lotta relief, but he can't be bothered by it after that nightmare.

"Has this black cat ever denied you a thing?" He murmurs, opening his window further and stepping aside.

She tosses her yo-yo and swings, landing in his room. Once both feet hit his carpet, she calls off her transformation and pockets her phone.

In Ladybug's place was Marinette, clad in adorable pink pajamas.

He vaguely wonders if that will ever get old. ( _Probably not._ )

"You came? You came all the way over here?” He breathes, reaching out and tugging her to his chest in an embrace. He needs to have her close, feel her being alive and okay.

She hesitates for a heartbeat, but is still quick to wrap her arms around him.

"I felt like you needed visual proof that I was okay."

"Thank you." He whispers, letting go of her to offer a small, watery smile.

“Of course, Adrien. I’ll always be there for you.” She murmurs, brushing his bangs away from his face. Her eyes, and touch, and voice are much more tender than anything he’s used to since his mom left. It just makes it that much harder to keep himself together.

She gently wipes his tears away with the edge of her sleeve, and that coupled with everything else undoes him entirely. He tries to swallow the sob rising in his throat, if anything at all to save some dignity, but it’s much too much all at once, and the sob escapes him involuntarily as he crumbles into her arms.

"Hey, shhh. I'm okay. Everyone is okay. Everything is fine." She soothes, gently rubbing his back to calm him down. “You're okay. I’m okay. I'm here."

"It was so bad, Mari." He finally forces out, each of his sobs shattering her heart. "You-Your transformation wore off, and he found you, and he captured you. I-I wasn't quick enough.." He cries into her, clinging to her. "I was too late. He hurt you, Mari, and it was horrible, so _fucking_ horrible."

She lets him sob, lets him ramble on and on until he's gotten it out of his system and is just a sniffling pile of boy in her arms. And then, she runs her hands through his hair and guides his face to look at her.

"It's alright, Adrien. It was a nightmare, okay?" She says gently, wiping his tears away with the pads of her thumbs. "I'm here and I'm not leaving until you're okay enough."

He nods, giving her a shaky, unsure smile.

"Come on."

She grabs his hand and leads him to his bed. She pulls the covers back enough for him to climb in, and then she sits next to him against his backboard. He lays his head on her lap, wrapping an arm around her legs to keep her near, and she runs her fingers through his golden locks.

"I'm right here, okay? We are both okay. He's not going to get me, he isnt going to get you. We are okay."

Eventually even his sniffles subside, and he calms down enough to fall asleep. His gentle snoring lulls her to sleep, the last thing either of them remember is each other.

 

* * *

 

Marinette wakes up to a strange tapping noise on her window.

“These fucking pigeons..” She grumbles.

She hurls a pillow at the window, but the tapping noise continues.

“Sur ma vie....”

She throws her comforter off of her, just careful enough not to disturb Tikki, and silently storms over to her window. She rips the curtains open, throws open the window, and shoos away the damn pigeon tapping at her window.

_They should’ve disappeared along with Mister Pigeon…._

Once the flying pest is gone, she climbs back into her bed, ready to go back to sleep, when she hears a tapping on her trap door that leads to her balcony above her.

“ _Oh, for the love of-!_ ”

She throws open the hatch, a nice string of bright, colorful words already on the tip of her tongue, but she’s so utterly shocked that it dies in her throat; instead of the beady little black eyes of a bird, she’s met with a familiar pair of wide, luminescent green ones.

“Kitty?” She breathes out, her baby blue eyes full of concern. “What on earth are you doing here?”

He tries to smile, but she sees right through it.

“I was in the neighborhood, decided to check in on my favorite bug.” He shrugs, attempting to look nonchalant.

Realization hits her as he gazes at her, eyes full of relief and tear tracks staining his cheeks. She softens immediately, a sad sigh escaping her.

“Come on.” She says, then moves out of the way so he can drop down onto her bed.

He does as expected and drops right down onto her bed, landing on his butt.

“Why didn’t you call first?” She asks, watching him from her perch near the end of her bed.

He shrugs, a shy look on his face. “You’re usually up at this time, and I wanted to see you as soon as I could.”

She opens her mouth to answer, but hesitates, and her ears tinge pink. She looks down at her lap, fingers playing with her comforter.

“You wanna know something kind of embarrassing?”

He looks up at her, head tilted much like a curious kitten.

“More embarrassing than having recurring nightmares as a seventeen year old?”

She nods. She’s avoiding eye contact.

“Try me, My Lady.” He says, leaning his back against her headboard.

“I-I’m not really awake at this time; I go to bed at ten. But, after your first call...” She looks back to her fiddling hands. “I changed your ringer to the loudest one I could find so it would wake me up. Just in case it happened again.” She quickly admits, shrinking in on herself with every word.

He just stares at her, eyes wide in awe, tears forming once again. Would she really go that far, for _him_?

“What?” He breathes.

“I changed your ringer to the loudest one I could find, just in case you called late at night again.”

“Marinette..”

“I-I know it’s weird, but-“

“No. It’s...”

He crawls closer to her, settling down on his knees in front of her. He takes her hands in his and ducks his head down to catch her gaze.

“-it’s the sweetest, nicest, most amazing thing anyone has ever done for me.” He admits, sniffling. He mentally curses, willing his tears to subside just this once.

_Can he have no dignity around this amazing girl?_

Her head snaps up, eyes wide in surprise.

“Wh-What?”

He just shakes his head, letting out an airy laugh and ignoring the tears falling down his face.

“You’re amazing.” He says, leaning his forehead on hers. “No one cares about me like that.”

She simultaneously looks heartbroken and happy at the same time, and she frees one of her hands to cup his cheek.

“I’ll always care about you like this.”

It’s too much affection for him so up close and at once that it makes his head spin.

He isn’t sure what to say next, so he lets his eyes flutter shut, and he breathes in her scent.

“I’ll always care about you like this too.” He murmurs, nightmare forgotten for the time being.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave a comment or kudos bc it means so so much to me!!!!!! ily all thank u for reading my shit :’))


	3. part three // fin.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a cute ending to a cute story? MAYBE SO

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i have no excuse for being six months late. i was just lazy.
> 
> nevertheless, it’s here! the finale! it’s just pure fluff for my own selfish reasons but hope y’all enjoy xx

Marinette is slowly awakened from her deep slumber, eyes fluttering open to a dark room. After blinking the sleep out of her eyes, she checks the clock on the bedside table out of habit; 1:27 AM. She doesn’t have to be awake for another six hours.

She picks up her phone and sees no new messages or alerts. So that didn’t wake her up.

She looks to the two sleeping kwami on the foot of the bed; sound asleep, warm and cozy, meaning her boyfriend is not in costume; nor is anyone in danger.

Why the hell is she awake, then?

She turns over in search of warmth and cuddles, and with a pout, she instantly realizes why.

Adrien is gone.

She stretches, heaving a big yawn, and gets out of their bed. She slips on a pair of his pajama pants, ties them tight so they won’t fall, and wraps herself in the throw blanket at the foot of their bed. Yawning again, she makes her way to their open balcony doors, where her partner is undoubtedly waiting for her.

Sure enough, she spots him leaning against the railing with a steaming cup of tea.

“How long have you been out here?” She wonders from behind him, voice sleepy and soft.

He turns, a teasing glint in his eyes.

“About ten minutes. You’re late, Bugaboo.”

She walks closer to him, and he helps her wrap the blanket around the both of them. She tucks herself into his side as he wraps his arm around her. He offers her his tea, and she takes a sip, holding the warm cup with icy fingers.

There is a long, comfortable silence that settles between them, until Marinette’s worries become too much to keep to herself.

“Nightmare?” She asks, eyes wide and full of fright.

That one word holds so much meaning between them, and once he realizes what she’s asking, his eyes fill with so much love at her concern. He hasn’t had a nightmare in months, maybe even years; yet she’s still worried that might be the reason he’s up at nearly two in the morning, when in reality it’s quite the opposite.

He shakes his head, giving her a soft smile to ease her worries. His heart unknowingly shines in his eyes as he looks into her baby blues still wide with worry.

“No. I’m just too damn excited.”

She looks down at that shiny diamond ring on her left hand, and back up to his handsome face. From this angle, his green eyes catch the moonlight just right, framed perfectly by his messy blonde locks backlit by city lights.

“Good.” She says, giving him a small smile of her own.

“I am too.” She adds on with a blissful sigh, turning around so they’re chest to chest.

He takes the mug of tea from her hands and sets it down on the banister so he can hold her closer. He pulls the blanket around them tighter to ward off the cool October night air.

“But it would still be nice to wake up next to my fiancé on the day of our wedding.” She murmurs, tucking his hair behind his ear.

“My lady, you know it’s bad luck to see the bride before the wedding. You already have a black cat crossing your path; do you really want another bad omen?” He teases.

“I’m Ladybug, I’ve got enough luck to last a lifetime.”

“Mm, no. That’s me.” He murmurs, kissing her forehead. “I got lucky enough to meet you.”

“Shut up,” She says, and her tone may be serious but her face is anything but.

She’s looking up at him with stars in her eyes, and it makes his heart skip a beat just like it did when he was 17. He sighs, soft and lovesick.

“I didn’t want to wake you up. You looked so peaceful.”

“Oh really? You sure didn’t have a problem with that five years ago.” She teases, a shiteating grin on her lips.

“In my defense, you let me think you were already awake!” He cries out, cheeks going pinker than her pajama top.

“I knew you wouldn’t have called if you knew I wasn’t.”

“You’re probably right.” He admits, adjusting his grip on her.

“Even if I was just a friend at the time.”

“Mari!” He cries out again, cheeks going impossibly pinker. “I was a stupid teenager, I get it!”

She giggles, leaning up to press a quick kiss to his lips. Her hand lingers on his cheek.

“Yeah, well, I still fell in love with you. What does that say about me?”

He grins, leaning his forehead against hers.

“Means you were a stupid teenager too...” He laughs, leaning down to capture her lips in a kiss that lasts much longer than the one before.

Their giggles and pure bliss in the moment drown out the city’s noise below. In this moment, nothing and no one is against them, or threatening them, nor is anyone in danger. There’s no Ladybug or Chat Noir or a crazy villain threatening their city. It’s just them, their love, and their excitement for the future and all that is yet to come.

fin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave a kudos or a comment it means the world to me thank u and goodbye xx


End file.
